Checked for accuracy by our qualified fact-checkers, verifiers and subject experts. Find out more about fact-checking at CHOICE.
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
Australians are predicted to spend nearly $59 billion this Christmas, according to the Australian Retailers Association.
It's an expensive time of year, what with gifts, food, decorations and drinks to buy. Who wouldn't want to save a few dollars?
With that in mind, we carried out a price spot-check on 22 Christmas grocery items at Aldi, Coles and Woolworths to find out which has the best buys.
The supermarket with the cheapest basket is...
Aldi – with a total basket price of $149.14. That's $28.36 cheaper than the most expensive basket – savings that would certainly come in handy during the holidays.
The difference between Coles' and Woolworths' total basket was $10.65 – with Woolworths coming in cheaper.
The total cost of each basket is based on each item's non-sale price. But we did get a bonus box of Cadbury Favourites in a two-for-one deal at Coles.
Christmas grocery basket prices compared
A basket of 22 items cost $149.14 at Aldi, $166.85 at Woolworths and $177.50 at Coles.
Prices were those promoted instore on the same day in December 2021.
Cheaper deals can be found
Depending on where and when you shop, there's a good chance some of the items in our baskets will be on sale.
When we applied the specials that were available on the day of our comparison, Aldi still came in cheapest with a total price of $147.84.
Woolworths had $15.50 in savings and their discounted basket remained in second place ($151.35), followed by Coles ($171 – $6.50 cheaper than their full-price basket).
But even if the same specials we found don't apply, it's likely some items will be on sale at these retailers and you won't pay full price.
We created a shopping list of 22 items based on last year's list, adding and subtracting to take into account availability on the day we shopped.
We then compared Aldi's prices instore for these items with the cheapest option of the equivalent pack size or quantity available through the Coles and Woolworths online shopping sites.
Prices were collected on the same day in December 2021 for fair comparison. The prices are the full cost of each item and do not include sales or specials.
Total cost of our Christmas basket in 2020
On the day we did our mystery shop, Aldi had the cheapest basket with a total price of $154.76*. That's $11.29 cheaper than the most expensive basket.
The difference between Coles' and Woolworths' total basket was very slim, with Coles coming in at just $4.05 cheaper than Woolies.
This price comparison includes the various specials available on the day of our mystery shop. We even got a bonus jar of scorched almonds in a two-for-one deal at Coles.
*Including a credit card surcharge of 0.5%.
Depending on when you shop, you might not get the same specials we got, so we've also compared the total cost of each basket, based on each item's non-sale price.
Aldi didn't have any specials, and rarely do, so they still had the cheapest basket at $154.76.
Coles and Woolies baskets cost about $17 more – totalling $182.50 and $180.10, respectively. But even if the same specials we found don't apply, it's likely some items will be on sale at these retailers and you won't pay full price.
What's in the basket?
Christmas food
Half leg ham (closest to 3.5kg)
Turkey breast roast, frozen (1kg)
Smoked salmon (150g or closest)
Extra large tiger prawns, cooked (1.5kg)
Christmas pudding (700g)
Gin flavoured fruit mince pies (6 pack)
Brandy snaps (8 pack)
Raspberries or blueberries, frozen (500g)
Thickened cream (600mL)
Pavlova (500g)
Custard (1L)
Brie (125g)
Chocolate coins or equivalent (150g)
Cadbury Roses chocolates (450g)
Cadbury chocolate almonds (310g)
Christmas decor, cards and wrap
Christmas cards (10 pack)
Christmas gift wrap (single roll, 5m)
Christmas crackers/bonbons (10 pack or closest)
How we carried out our mystery shop
We created a shopping list of 18 Christmas essentials, adjusted to take into account product availability on the day we shopped.
We then shopped in store for those items at Aldi, Coles and Woolworths, looking for the cheapest option of the equivalent pack size or quantity available.
We did the mystery shop on the same day in December 2020.
In 2019, the supermarket with the cheapest basket was...
Aldi – with a total basket price of $174.50. That's $46.80 cheaper than the most expensive basket – savings that would certainly come in handy during the holidays.
The difference between Coles' and Woolworths' total basket was close, with Woolies coming in at $6.30 cheaper than Coles.
A basket of 22 items cost:
Aldi: $174.50
Woolworths; $215
Coles: $221.30
What's in the basket?
Christmas food
Half leg ham (closest to 5kg)
Turkey breast roast, frozen (1kg)
Smoked salmon (500g)
Australian tiger prawns, cooked (1kg)
Christmas pudding (700g)
Fruit mince pies (6 pack)
Brandy snaps (8 pack)
Raspberries, frozen (500g)
Thickened cream (600mL)
Pavlova (500g)
Custard (1L)
Candy canes (30 pack)
Brie (125g)
Mixed nuts, salted (375g)
Chocolate coins (150g)
Cadbury Roses chocolates (450g)
Chocolate Lindt balls or equivalent (150g or closest)
Christmas decor, cards and wrap
Christmas cards (10 pack)
Christmas gift wrap (single roll, 5m)
Tinsel (4m or closest)
Outdoor solar LED fairy/icicle lights (250 pack or closest)
Christmas crackers/bon bons (10 pack or closest)
In 2018, the supermarket with the cheapest basket was...
Aldi – with a total basket price of about 15% less than its nearest competitor.
The gap had closed on the previous year though – the three supermarkets were all closer in price in 2018 than in 2017.
Some Christmas essentials – like candy canes and baubles – weren't available when we visited Aldi, so they weren't included in our check.
A basket of 22 items cost:
Aldi: $175.16
Coles: $205.24
Woolworths: $207.30
What's in the basket?
Christmas food
Half leg ham (closest to 5kg)
Turkey breast roast, frozen (1kg)
Smoked salmon (200g)
Australian tiger prawns, cooked (1kg)
Christmas pudding (700g)
Fruit mince pies (6 pack)
Brandy snaps (8 pack)
Raspberries, frozen (500g)
Thickened cream (600mL)
Brie (125g or closest)
Mixed nuts, dry roasted (375g or closest)
Mixed nuts in shell (550g or closest)
Chocolate coins (150g)
Favourites chocolates (320g)
Mars Celebration Tub (692g)
Chocolate Lindt balls or equivalent (150g or closest)
Christmas decor, cards and wrap
Christmas cards (10 pack)
Christmas gift wrap (single roll, 5m)
Tinsel (3m or closest)
Outdoor LED fairy/icicle lights (250 pack or closest)
Christmas crackers/bon bons (12 pack or closest)
We conducted our price spot-check using the same process as in 2019.
